4723.28
Disciplinary actions.

(A) The board of nursing, by a vote of a quorum, may
impose one or more of the following sanctions if it finds that a person
committed fraud in passing an examination required to obtain a license or dialysis
technician certificate issued by the board or to have committed fraud,
misrepresentation, or deception in applying for or securing any nursing
license or
dialysis technician certificate issued by the board: deny, revoke, suspend, or
place restrictions on any nursing license or dialysis technician certificate issued
by the board; reprimand or otherwise discipline a holder of a nursing
license or
dialysis technician certificate; or impose a fine of not more than five hundred
dollars per violation.

(B) The board
of nursing, by a vote of a quorum, may impose one or more of the following
sanctions: deny, revoke, suspend, or place restrictions on any nursing
license or
dialysis technician certificate issued by the board; reprimand or otherwise
discipline a holder of a nursing license or dialysis technician certificate; or
impose a fine of not more than five hundred dollars per violation. The
sanctions may be imposed for any of the following:

(1)
Denial, revocation, suspension, or restriction of authority to engage in a
licensed profession or practice a health care occupation, including nursing or
practice as a dialysis technician, for any reason other than a failure to
renew, in Ohio or another state or jurisdiction;

(2)
Engaging in the practice of nursing or engaging in practice as a dialysis
technician, having failed to renew a nursing license or dialysis technician
certificate issued under this chapter, or while a nursing license or dialysis
technician certificate is under suspension;

(3)
Conviction of, a plea of guilty to, a judicial finding of guilt of, a judicial
finding of guilt resulting from a plea of no contest to, or a judicial finding
of eligibility for a pretrial diversion or similar program or for intervention
in lieu of conviction for, a misdemeanor committed in the course of
practice;

(4) Conviction
of, a plea of guilty to, a judicial finding of guilt of, a judicial finding of
guilt resulting from a plea of no contest to, or a judicial finding of
eligibility for a pretrial diversion or similar program or for intervention in
lieu of conviction for, any felony or of any crime involving gross immorality
or moral turpitude;

(5) Selling,
giving away, or administering drugs or therapeutic devices for other than legal
and legitimate therapeutic purposes; or conviction of, a plea of guilty to, a
judicial finding of guilt of, a judicial finding of guilt resulting from a plea
of no contest to, or a judicial finding of eligibility for a pretrial diversion
or similar program or for intervention in lieu of conviction for, violating any
municipal, state, county, or federal drug law;

(6)
Conviction of, a plea of guilty to, a judicial finding of guilt of, a judicial
finding of guilt resulting from a plea of no contest to, or a judicial finding
of eligibility for a pretrial diversion or similar program or for intervention
in lieu of conviction for, an act in another jurisdiction that would constitute
a felony or a crime of moral turpitude in Ohio;

(7)
Conviction of, a plea of guilty to, a judicial finding of guilt of, a judicial
finding of guilt resulting from a plea of no contest to, or a judicial finding
of eligibility for a pretrial diversion or similar program or for intervention
in lieu of conviction for, an act in the course of practice in another
jurisdiction that would constitute a misdemeanor in Ohio;

(8)
Self-administering or otherwise taking into the body any dangerous drug, as
defined in section 4729.01 of the Revised Code, in
any way that is not in accordance with a legal, valid prescription issued for
that individual, or self-administering or otherwise taking into the body any
drug that is a schedule I controlled substance;

(9)
Habitual or excessive use of controlled substances, other habit-forming drugs,
or alcohol or other chemical substances to an extent that impairs the
individual's ability to provide safe nursing care or safe dialysis
care;

(10) Impairment
of the ability to practice according to acceptable and prevailing standards of
safe nursing care or safe dialysis care because of the use of drugs, alcohol,
or other chemical substances;

(11)
Impairment of the ability to practice according to acceptable and prevailing
standards of safe nursing care or safe dialysis care because of a physical or
mental disability;

(12) Assaulting
or causing harm to a patient or depriving a patient of the means to summon
assistance;

(13)
Misappropriation or attempted misappropriation of money or anything of value in
the course of practice;

(14)
Adjudication by a probate court of being mentally ill or mentally incompetent.
The board may reinstate the person's nursing license or dialysis technician
certificate upon adjudication by a probate court of the person's restoration to
competency or upon submission to the board of other proof of
competency.

(15) The
suspension or termination of employment by the United
States department of defense or department of
veterans affairs for any act that violates
or would violate this chapter;

(17)
Violation of any restrictions placed by the board on a nursing license or
dialysis technician certificate;

(18)
Failure to use universal and standard precautions established by rules adopted
under section 4723.07 of the Revised
Code;

(19) Failure to
practice in accordance with acceptable and prevailing standards of safe nursing
care or safe dialysis care;

(20) In
the case of a registered nurse, engaging in activities that exceed the practice
of nursing as a registered nurse;

(21) In
the case of a licensed practical nurse, engaging in activities that exceed the
practice of nursing as a licensed practical nurse;

(22) In
the case of a dialysis technician, engaging in activities that exceed those
permitted under section
4723.72 of the Revised
Code;

(23) Aiding and
abetting a person in that person's practice of nursing without a license or
practice as a dialysis technician without a certificate issued under this
chapter;

(24) In the case
of an advanced practice registered
nurse, except as provided in division (M) of this section, either of the
following:

(a) Waiving the
payment of all or any part of a deductible or copayment that a patient,
pursuant to a health insurance or health care policy, contract, or plan that
covers such nursing services, would otherwise be required to pay if the waiver
is used as an enticement to a patient or group of patients to receive health
care services from that provider;

(b)
Advertising that the nurse will waive the payment of all or any part of a
deductible or copayment that a patient, pursuant to a health insurance or
health care policy, contract, or plan that covers such nursing services, would
otherwise be required to pay.

(25)
Failure to comply with the terms and conditions of participation in the
chemical dependency monitoring program established under section
4723.35 of the Revised
Code;

(26) Failure to
comply with the terms and conditions required under the practice intervention
and improvement program established under section
4723.282 of the Revised
Code;

(a)
Engaging in activities that exceed those permitted for the nurse's nursing
specialty under section
4723.43 of the Revised
Code;

(b) Failure to
meet the quality assurance standards established under section
4723.07 of the Revised
Code.

(28) In the case
of an advanced practice registered nurse other
than a certified registered nurse anesthetist, failure to
maintain a standard care arrangement in accordance with section
4723.431 of the Revised Code or
to practice in accordance with the standard care arrangement;

(29) In
the case of an advanced practice registered nurse who
is designated as a clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse-midwife, or
certified nurse practitioner , failure to prescribe drugs and therapeutic devices in
accordance with section
4723.481 of the Revised
Code;

(30) Prescribing
any drug or device to perform or induce an abortion, or otherwise performing or
inducing an abortion;

(31) Failure to
establish and maintain professional boundaries with a patient, as specified in
rules adopted under section
4723.07 of the Revised
Code;

(32) Regardless
of whether the contact or verbal behavior is consensual, engaging with a
patient other than the spouse of the registered nurse, licensed practical
nurse, or dialysis technician in any of the following:

(a)
Sexual contact, as defined in section
2907.01 of the Revised
Code;

(b) Verbal
behavior that is sexually demeaning to the patient or may be reasonably
interpreted by the patient as sexually demeaning.

(33)
Assisting suicide, as defined in section
3795.01 of the Revised
Code;

(34) Failure to
comply with the requirements in section
3719.061 of the Revised Code
before issuing for a minor a prescription for an opioid analgesic, as defined
in section 3719.01 of the Revised
Code;

(35) Failure to
comply with section 4723.487 of the Revised Code,
unless the state board of pharmacy no longer maintains a drug database pursuant
to section 4729.75 of the Revised Code;

(36) The revocation, suspension, restriction, reduction, or
termination of clinical privileges by the United States department of defense
or department of veterans affairs or the termination or suspension of a
certificate of registration to prescribe drugs by the drug enforcement
administration of the United States department of
justice.

(C)
Disciplinary actions taken by the board under divisions (A) and (B) of this
section shall be taken pursuant to an adjudication conducted under Chapter 119.
of the Revised Code, except that in lieu of a hearing, the board may enter into
a consent agreement with an individual to resolve an allegation of a violation
of this chapter or any rule adopted under it. A consent agreement, when
ratified by a vote of a quorum, shall constitute the findings and order of the
board with respect to the matter addressed in the agreement. If the board
refuses to ratify a consent agreement, the admissions and findings contained in
the agreement shall be of no effect.

(D)
The hearings of the board shall be conducted in accordance with Chapter 119. of
the Revised Code, the board may appoint a hearing examiner, as provided in
section 119.09 of the Revised Code, to
conduct any hearing the board is authorized to hold under Chapter 119. of the
Revised Code.

In any instance in which
the board is required under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to give notice of
an opportunity for a hearing and the applicant, licensee, or certificate holder
does not make a timely request for a hearing in accordance with section
119.07 of the Revised Code, the
board is not required to hold a hearing, but may adopt, by a vote of a quorum,
a final order that contains the board's findings. In the final order, the board
may order any of the sanctions listed in division (A) or (B) of this
section.

(E) If a criminal action is brought against a
registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or dialysis technician for an act
or crime described in divisions (B)(3) to (7) of this section and the action is
dismissed by the trial court other than on the merits, the board shall conduct
an adjudication to determine whether the registered nurse, licensed practical
nurse, or dialysis technician committed the act on which the action was based.
If the board determines on the basis of the adjudication that the registered
nurse, licensed practical nurse, or dialysis technician committed the act, or
if the registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or dialysis technician fails
to participate in the adjudication, the board may take action as though the
registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or dialysis technician had been
convicted of the act.

If the board takes action
on the basis of a conviction, plea, or a judicial finding as described in
divisions (B)(3) to (7) of this section that is overturned on appeal, the
registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or dialysis technician may, on
exhaustion of the appeal process, petition the board for reconsideration of its
action. On receipt of the petition and supporting court documents, the board
shall temporarily rescind its action. If the board determines that the decision
on appeal was a decision on the merits, it shall permanently rescind its
action. If the board determines that the decision on appeal was not a decision
on the merits, it shall conduct an adjudication to determine whether the
registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or dialysis technician committed
the act on which the original conviction, plea, or judicial finding was based.
If the board determines on the basis of the adjudication that the registered
nurse, licensed practical nurse, or dialysis technician committed such act, or
if the registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or dialysis technician does
not request an adjudication, the board shall reinstate its action; otherwise,
the board shall permanently rescind its action.

Notwithstanding the
provision of division (C)(2) of section
2953.32 of the Revised Code
specifying that if records pertaining to a criminal case are sealed under that
section the proceedings in the case shall be deemed not to have occurred,
sealing of the following records on which the board has based an action under
this section shall have no effect on the board's action or any sanction imposed
by the board under this section: records of any conviction, guilty plea,
judicial finding of guilt resulting from a plea of no contest, or a judicial
finding of eligibility for a pretrial diversion program or intervention in lieu
of conviction.

The board shall not be
required to seal, destroy, redact, or otherwise modify its records to reflect
the court's sealing of conviction records.

(F)
The board may investigate an individual's criminal background in performing its
duties under this section. As part of such investigation, the board may order
the individual to submit, at the individual's expense, a request to the bureau
of criminal identification and investigation for a criminal records check and
check of federal bureau of investigation records in accordance with the
procedure described in section
4723.091 of the Revised
Code.

(G) During the course of an investigation conducted
under this section, the board may compel any registered nurse, licensed
practical nurse, or dialysis technician or applicant under this chapter to
submit to a mental or physical examination, or both, as required by the board
and at the expense of the individual, if the board finds reason to believe that
the individual under investigation may have a physical or mental impairment
that may affect the individual's ability to provide safe nursing care. Failure
of any individual to submit to a mental or physical examination when directed
constitutes an admission of the allegations, unless the failure is due to
circumstances beyond the individual's control, and a default and final order
may be entered without the taking of testimony or presentation of evidence.

If the board finds that
an individual is impaired, the board shall require the individual to submit to
care, counseling, or treatment approved or designated by the board, as a
condition for initial, continued, reinstated, or renewed authority to practice.
The individual shall be afforded an opportunity to demonstrate to the board
that the individual can begin or resume the individual's occupation in
compliance with acceptable and prevailing standards of care under the
provisions of the individual's authority to practice.

For purposes of this
division, any registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or dialysis
technician or applicant under this chapter shall be deemed to have given
consent to submit to a mental or physical examination when directed to do so in
writing by the board, and to have waived all objections to the admissibility of
testimony or examination reports that constitute a privileged
communication.

(H) The board shall investigate evidence that appears
to show that any person has violated any provision of this chapter or any rule
of the board. Any person may report to the board any information the person may
have that appears to show a violation of any provision of this chapter or rule
of the board. In the absence of bad faith, any person who reports such
information or who testifies before the board in any adjudication conducted
under Chapter 119. of the Revised Code shall not be liable for civil damages as
a result of the report or testimony.

(I)
All of the following apply under this chapter with respect to the
confidentiality of information:

(1) Information
received by the board pursuant to a complaint or an investigation is
confidential and not subject to discovery in any civil action, except that the
board may disclose information to law enforcement officers and government
entities for purposes of an investigation of either a licensed health care
professional, including a registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or
dialysis technician, or a person who may have engaged in the unauthorized
practice of nursing or dialysis care. No law enforcement officer or government
entity with knowledge of any information disclosed by the board pursuant to
this division shall divulge the information to any other person or government
entity except for the purpose of a government investigation, a prosecution, or
an adjudication by a court or government entity.

(2) If
an investigation requires a review of patient records, the investigation and
proceeding shall be conducted in such a manner as to protect patient
confidentiality.

(3) All
adjudications and investigations of the board shall be considered civil actions
for the purposes of section
2305.252 of the Revised
Code.

(4) Any board
activity that involves continued monitoring of an individual as part of or
following any disciplinary action taken under this section shall be conducted
in a manner that maintains the individual's confidentiality. Information
received or maintained by the board with respect to the board's monitoring
activities is not subject to discovery in any civil action and is confidential,
except that the board may disclose information to law enforcement officers and
government entities for purposes of an investigation of a licensee or
certificate holder.

(J)
Any action taken by the board under this section resulting in a suspension from
practice shall be accompanied by a written statement of the conditions under
which the person may be reinstated to practice.

(K)
When the board refuses to grant a license or certificate to an applicant,
revokes a license or certificate, or refuses to reinstate a license or
certificate, the board may specify that its action is permanent. An individual
subject to permanent action taken by the board is forever ineligible to hold a
license or certificate of the type that was refused or revoked and the board
shall not accept from the individual an application for reinstatement of the
license or certificate or for a new license or certificate.

(L) No
unilateral surrender of a nursing license, certificate of authority, or
dialysis technician certificate issued under this chapter shall be effective
unless accepted by majority vote of the board. No application for a nursing
license, certificate of authority, or dialysis technician certificate issued
under this chapter may be withdrawn without a majority vote of the board. The
board's jurisdiction to take disciplinary action under this section is not
removed or limited when an individual has a license or certificate classified
as inactive or fails to renew a license or certificate.

(M)
Sanctions shall not be imposed under division (B)(24) of this section against
any licensee who waives deductibles and copayments as follows:

(1) In
compliance with the health benefit plan that expressly allows such a practice.
Waiver of the deductibles or copayments shall be made only with the full
knowledge and consent of the plan purchaser, payer, and third-party
administrator. Documentation of the consent shall be made available to the
board upon request.

(2) For
professional services rendered to any other person licensed pursuant to this
chapter to the extent allowed by this chapter and the rules of the
board.